Yes, I realize 2 out of my first 4 posts are about love, but this one will be a bit different from the first. Instead of discussing how we are to love one another, this time it's about how we are to love Love - how we are called to love the Father. The creator of love. Love defined.
One particular passage has stood out to me a lot lately. This past weekend, I was reading Genesis 22 in my own personal Bible study and it also happened to be the topic in the high school Sunday school at my church (I am now co-leading a 12th grade girls group). But before I dig into Genesis 22, let's start with what God tells us is the first and greatest commandment.
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." Matthew 22: 37-38. These words are straight from the mouth of Jesus (they're typed in red in my Bible :) ).
One thing that I think is often overlooked is the fact that Jesus was actually quoting this from the Old Testament. He is echoing Deuteronomy 6:5 which says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength."
Another way to look at both of these verses is to say, "Love the Lord your God with EVERYTHING you have." (Thanks Grant Janik for pointing that out to me!).
Love Him with EVERYTHING - don't hold anything back from Him. He deserves all of our thoughts, all of our souls, all of our strength, all of our hearts. Everything.
Abraham was a great example of this - so let's get back to Genesis 22. But even before I get into the specifics of chapter 22, I'll give you a little background. Abraham (once called Abram before God began to use him in a mighty way) was married to Sarah, who was barren. Abraham and Sarah prayed and pleaded with God for a child for many, many years. They were so desperate to be parents that they even agreed Abraham should sleep with Hagar, a servant woman, in order that Hagar would give Abraham a child. This wasn't what God meant when he told Abraham he would be the father of a great nation. God kept his promise to Sarah and Abraham (that Abraham would be the father of a great nation aka Israel) and Sarah gave birth to Isaac. Keep in mind this was when Sarah was around 90 years old and Abraham around 100 years old. Needless to say, Isaac was their miracle child and they knew he was a gift from God. Therefore, Isaac was cherished.
Enter Genesis 22. God called Abraham to do something that seemed completely insane. God called out to Abraham and told him to sacrifice Isaac. Not to just send him out to make mistakes on his own or anything like that, but to physically build an alter, slaughter his son, and burn him as an offering to God. Keep in mind this was before the time of Jesus when Jesus was sacrificed on the cross to bare the burden of our sins. Sacrifices were an act of worship and a symbol of giving up something of value (typically a lamb) to represent repentance of sins.
Now, I'm not a parent yet, but I can't even imagine the agony Abraham must have felt when God told him to sacrifice his son - his beloved son Isaac. But because of his love and trust in God, Abraham didn't even hesitate. "God said, take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about. Early the next morning, Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about." (verses 2-3). Continuing on, it took them 3 days to get to Moriah. 3 days to think about what was coming. 3 days that Abraham, I'm sure, spent questioning why God would have him do such a thing. And yet he didn't delay. Abraham didn't hesitate to obey what God commanded him to do, even though it meant killing his own son (does this story remind you of anything? Maybe the way God sacrificed his own Son, His only son Jesus...?).
Now that is obedience. That is incredible love for God! I can't begin to imagine the agony Abraham must have felt, but he didn't let that stop him from obeying God. And this is what God calls us all to do - to lay down our lives, pick up our crosses and follow God. Obey God. Do what He commands us to do, which is to love Him.
For those that don't already know, God was simply testing Abraham. Just as Abraham was lifting the knife to slay his son, God called out to him and told him not to lay a hand on the boy. Instead, God provided a ram for the sacrifice. God simply wanted Abraham to prove his love and obedience.
What would you do if God commanded you to do something so difficult in order to prove your love and obedience to Him?
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